Aldermore Group's net lending to customers reaches

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This is up from £12.4bn on the previous period.

In addition, it saw growth of £0.1bn in retail mortgages to £7.4bn which it believes was due to lower customer activity as a result of continued uncertainty in the economy.

MotoNovo finance was up £0.7bn to £2.5bn, reflecting growth and pent up demand in the months following the first UK lockdown.

However, it noted a £0.2bn reduction in business finance to £3.1bn.

Total customer deposits grew by 6% to £11.5bn.

Meanwhile, the group’s profit before tax was £57.6m, down from £59.4m in the six months to 31 December 2019.

The impairment charge of £49.3m, up from £26m in the six months to 31 Dec 2019, reflects the volatile macroeconomic outlook, the ongoing impact of payment relief schemes and the increased loan book outlined the group.

Furthermore, net interest margins increased to 3.3% and the cost-to-income ratio rose to 49.9%.

Phillip Monks (pictured), chief executive of Aldermore Group, said: “Our priorities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic have been to support our customers and safeguard our colleagues’ wellbeing.

“During this period, we’ve provided nearly 56,000 customers with payment relief such as mortgage payment breaks and I’m pleased to report that as a result of working with our customers, the vast majority have now resumed repayments.

“We’ve also redoubled our efforts to care for colleagues’ mental and physical health during the prolonged impacts of COVID-19.

“It’s been one of the most unprecedented economic periods the UK has experienced.

“However, these results show an enduring resilience and a disciplined approach that continues to return a profit, while backing our customers through the challenges they’ve faced.

“Looking ahead, the economic environment remains uncertain. What is clear though is that it will need a collective effort to get the UK economy back on its feet and to prosper.

“That’s why, across the Aldermore Group, we’re working hard on our customer propositions; getting finance to where it’s needed by backing UK SMEs, homeowners, landlords, and vehicle owners, and offering competitive savings products.

“We’re also continuing our investment in digitisation and automation to improve our customer experiences.

“Given our strong capitalisation and resilient half year results, we’ve good momentum to build upon to help customers through the remainder of the pandemic and grasp the opportunities during the recovery ahead.”